Mt Baker Micro Wedding | When you Pivot the Night Before

From their very first inquiry, talking with Brittanie and Clayton just felt like yapping with old friends. To us, that feeling is ALWAYS a really good sign that we’re aligned.

It just feels right, conversation flows easily, everything clicks, trust is easy to build, and things just flow.

These two connected over a shared love of adventures. Having heard over a work function  that Clayton had recently summited Mount Kilimanjaro, Brittannie reached out to him to see if she could pick his brain.

What was meant to be quick drinks turned into hours of deep conversation and connection. By their second date, Brittanie knew that they were endgame. 

Something we loved so much about these two is that they mentioned they’re both people who get a little drained by the world. They’re both pretty introverted at their core, but they found in each other the person they could actually recharge with.

Being deeply introverted, they knew that a micro wedding was more their speed. They knew they wanted to celebrate with a core group of folks, but also knew that a full blown wedding wasn’t for them. 

There are so many options for couples that want to get married without a wedding, and a micro-wedding in the North Cascades was the perfect choice for these two. 

They were drawn to the North Cascades. Brittanie had spent time in Switzerland and was really craving that big mountain energy as a backdrop for their micro wedding.

 If you’re celebrating with guests and are after stunning water features, like alpine lakes, and mountain views that just take your breath away, the cascades are an easy choice. 

We weighed the challenges of the eastern cascades vs. the western side on our very first call, and knew by the end that the western side would deliver everything they were hoping for. 

For a detailed breakdown of what to expect in each region of these mountains, check out our North Cascades Elopement Guide. 

Mount Baker was the right call for a few reasons. Yes, it’s stunning (du) the alpine lakes, the wildflower meadows, the views are just insane. 

But, it was also the right call because their micro wedding guest list included some folks who needed a little more accessibility, and we didn’t want it to be like a crazy hike just to get to the ceremony. Mount Baker gives you that combination of genuine mountain grandeur without requiring everyone to suffer for it, which we just love.

For anyone thinking about doing something like this, getting married in a national forest typically doesn’t require a special use permit as long as your group is under 75 people, which obviously this wasn’t anywhere close to.

For a Mount Baker micro wedding, specifically, you may need to submit a group gathering application, and they like you to send that about a month out so the park has a good idea of how the space is being used. 

To help leave no trace and prioritize sustainability, we always encourage couples to skip any structures (chairs, arches, and no live or seeded florals where they’re not allowed). 

We’re on public lands, the public is going to public, and honestly a concise ceremony that feels really intentional is always going to serve you better than a long one in this kind of setting anyway.

For a Mt Baker micro wedding, prepping for the temps can be a little challenging. When prepping our couples, we’re always yapping about layers, because even in the summer months it can be pretty chilly. 

But not for Brittanie and Claytons Mt Baker micro wedding!! A heat dome rolled in just in time for them to make it to Washington. 90 degrees is hot as hell already, but when you’re at a high elevation and there’s zero shade, it is a special kind of brutality. 

The day before their Mt Baker micro wedding, they took some of their crew out on a group hike. Arguably one of the best hikes in the area. But, it was absolutely boiling that day. 

I (Sam) met up with them after their group hike to walk their ceremony location, talk through everything and make sure they felt so at ease about the next day. We walked through the area, talking about all the different options together. They chose one of our favorite spots!

During the walkthrough, I could just see how brutal the heat had been on their hike, and I just KNEW we needed to have a discussion about their sunrise plans. These two adventurous cuties had planned to do a massive hike at sunrise to exchange private vows near a beautiful alpine lake. 

It was a challenging hike already, but in the heat that was predicted for their wedding day, it had the potential to be beyond brutal. I took a moment to remind them that even though there was a plan laid out, what was most important was their experience. 

And the relief on their faces was immediate, “Oh thank God, she just knows.” And I’m so glad I said something and that they chose to prioritize their comfort, because what came next was honestly so much better.

Instead of the big hike, they opted for something more pulled back. We met at sunrise and took our time exploring the meadows filled with wildflowers. The water features were perfectly still and gave beautiful reflections. 

It became all about spending a really chill, sweet morning together, just the two of them. It really couldn’t have been more perfect. 

The alpenglow on Table Mountain. The wildflowers , they were just so beautiful. Walking around the lakes together in that early morning light, saying their private vows, just the two of them with no pressure, no chasing that perfect light while stacking up elevation gain. 

Without the mileage, this moment was something they wanted from the very beginning, something private and sacred, that was just for them before the rest of the day opened up. 

Cutting the big sunrise hike left some significant flexibility in their timeline, and we were able to document Brittanie getting ready with her crew.

It was so sweet to see her fam and best friend spend that time together and love on her while she got ready.

Trista Evans, a super talented and lovely Bellingham Makeup Artist worked with Brittanie to make sure she looked absolutely stunning, but also that her look would hold up under the face melting temps (obviously it did bc Brit looked insanely stunning all damn day).

Clayton had been hanging out at their Airbnb waiting to see his stunning bride (she got ready at a separate cabin).  Once our girl was ready and in her stunning wedding dress, we had their guests slowly make their way to our meet up location. This gave their group time to gather everyone up and take their time, while Brittannie and Clayton could share a private first look. 

Our approach to first looks really focus on a fly on the wall vibe. We check in with our couple to see how they envision their first look happening, how it would take place if we weren’t there, and what they want to remember from it.  

Britannie really wanted to surprise Clayton and have him turn around when she was ready. We brought Clayton out to the patio where there was some airflow (did we mention we were under a heart dome?). 

One of our favorite moments is when couples see each other in their wedding attire for the first time. And this moment between Brittanie and Clayton was so perfect.

Both of them were just overflowing with love for each other. Whenever these two are together, you can tell that they immediately feel at home.

Their guests were there waiting for them as we rolled up. We walked together as a group to the ceremony spot they chose the day before. Their group gathered, and we helped get everyone situated before we flowed into their ceremony. 

There is just something so different about watching someone who has genuinely witnessed your story lead your wedding ceremony. Having a family member or a close friend lead your ceremony is always such an incredible choice. It adds this weight to the ceremony that is real and earned and just so, so moving. Those are some of our favorite ceremonies to witness.

Originally they had planned to have just their immediate family at the ceremony, but the day before they decided to surprise the rest of their guests and have them as witnesses too, which we were of course thrilled by. 

Brittanie had warned us she’s a real crier, but I was right there with her. 

Right next to the ceremony spot there’s a picnic area and it’s just perfect for exactly this. They had cake and cupcakes for everyone, and peanut butter chocolate cupcakes specifically for Clayton, from our fave bakery Pure Bliss Desserts.

Once their guests headed out, we stepped away so that they had a minute to actually soak it all in. That little pause after the ceremony is always so worth protecting. So much can happen on an elopement day, and it’s important to build in moments of pause so that it all sticks. 

As the sun started shifting, we popped up to Artist Point for some beginning-of-sunset portraits, and these two were just up there having an absolute blast. And even though it was crazy hot, the views were impossibly clear. Just stunning. 

Truthfully, we don’t love an Artist Point elopement ceremony unless it’s at sunrise, because of the crowds. These two opted for sunset portraits here instead, which is absolutely the move!

And then, because it had been a long and beautiful and full day, we ended just before sunset, drove back down the mountain, and went and had the most delicious pizza at the upper part of Chair Nine. Everyone so exhausted and so, so happy.

Here’s the thing about Brittanie and Clayton that we keep coming back to. They both said, separately, that they’re people who get kind of drained by the world. People who need to recharge. And then they found each other and realized that together just felt different, that they could recharge with each other in a way they hadn’t been able to with anyone else. 

Their wedding day was a lot. Heat nobody expected. A timeline that got totally flipped. A last-minute surprise for their guests. A really full day on legs that had already done a big hike the day before. And at the end of it,  pizza, beer, everyone happy, views that were clear in a way we still can’t quite believe.

They looked recharged. And that, honestly, that’s how a wedding day should feel.

Elopement Ceremony Guide

Elopement Timeline Guide

How to Get Married Without a Wedding